Highway driving has unique characteristics compared to other road types. Shifting to PARK mode is a typical event near an arterial road, side street or parking lot, but on a highway it is an important data element that can be shared for the benefit of the driving public. The same is true with parameters such as lower vehicle speeds, a passenger opening a door, or a driver getting out of their seat to leave a vehicle.
Information concerning the status of a vehicle on a highway is currently provided by variable advisory message signs and wide-area radio frequency broadcasts, but these methods provide incomplete information that can be inconvenient to access. Advisory message signs are typically constructed along only urban highways, are usually situated at distant intervals, and are often difficult to read. Wide-area broadcasts that address the status of a vehicle on a highway have issues involving infrastructure coverage and timeliness of their reporting because the broadcasts are supported by detection methods that are limited in nature. Data collection and dissemination regarding the status of a vehicle on a highway currently focuses on the after effect that a vehicle has on surrounding traffic patterns. The entry and exit of occupants and the operational status of the vehicle are aspects that are not satisfactorily addressed by current systems.
In Japanese Patent laid-open Application No. 2004-78562, a communication system is disclosed for transmitting information regarding the driver's status to a remote vehicle. This patent application, however, does not disclose a system for providing an advisory message to other vehicles regarding the location of the occupants of a vehicle on a highway. Further, it does not disclose a system for providing information regarding the relative operational characteristics of a car in the same said location, and does not provide an advisory message that focuses on vehicle operations that are outside the scope of typical highway driving.